The present invention relates to traffic violation warning and traffic violation storage apparatus and in particular to traffic violation warning and traffic violation storage apparatus that predicts and warns against traffic violations, stores traffic violation details and updates traffic regulation data and penal regulation data.
Conventional apparatus that warns against traffic violations is a vehicle-mounted car navigation system disclosed in the Japanese Patent Publication No. H05-011700. FIG. 13 shows the configuration of the vehicle-mounted car navigation system. The vehicle-mounted car navigation system 300 detects the location of a vehicle by receiving a radio wave emitted from a location beacon by an antenna 317 and radio apparatus 316. The system also detects the direction of travel of a vehicle via a sensor 310. The system reads road traffic regulation information corresponding to the information on the location of the vehicle from a CD-ROM 311 via a CD-ROM driver 312 then displays the road traffic regulation information on a display 313. The traffic violation determination section 320 compares the information on the location of the vehicle with the road traffic regulation information and determines whether the driver commits traffic violations. In case the driver commits traffic violations, the system issues a warning via the display 313, a warning lamp 321 and/or a speaker 322.
However, since the conventional vehicle-mounted car navigation system issues a warning once the driver of the vehicle has committed traffic violations, it is not possible to prematurely prevent traffic violations. Another problem is that the system is not capable of determine traffic violations concerning ignorance of the traffic lights. The system cannot determine traffic violations corresponding to the temporary modifications to traffic regulations due to weather or permanent modifications to traffic regulations.
The police control traffic violations on a daily basis because traffic violations cause traffic jams and/or accidents. The control, however, is not perfect because the number of policemen is limited.
In order to solve the above problem, the invention provides traffic violation warning and traffic violation storage apparatus which predicts and warns against traffic violations, addressing traffic violations concerning ignorance of the traffic lights and temporary or permanent modifications to traffic regulations, and updating traffic regulation data and penal regulation data. The invention further aims at controlling traffic violators without increasing the staff.
In order the solve the problems, according to the invention, traffic violation warning and traffic violation storage apparatus comprises a vehicle location detector for detecting the location and vehicle state of a vehicle to output vehicle state information, memory for storing at least either the map data, traffic regulation data or penal regulation data, traffic violation memory for storing personal information in advance, means for determining whether there is the possibility that a driver commits traffic violations based on the vehicle state information and traffic regulation data, means for issuing a traffic violation warning in case there is the possibility that the driver commits traffic violations, means for determining whether a driver has committed traffic violations based on the vehicle state information and traffic regulation data, and means for storing traffic violation details in the traffic violation memory in case the driver has committed traffic violations.
Via this configuration, it is possible to predict and warn against traffic violations to prematurely prevent traffic violations, store traffic violation details in case traffic violations have been committed and check the details in updating the driver""s license, thus assuring control with smaller group of staffs.
The traffic violation warning and traffic violation storage apparatus comprises a traffic light state receiver for receiving traffic light state information. Via this configuration, it is possible to address traffic violations concerning ignorance of the traffic lights.
The traffic violation warning and traffic violation storage apparatus comprises a traffic regulation data receiver for receiving temporarily or permanently modified traffic regulation data. Via this configuration, it is possible to determine traffic violations in accordance with temporary or permanent modifications to traffic regulations and update traffic regulation data records.
The traffic violation warning and traffic violation storage apparatus comprises a penal regulation data receiver for receiving modified penal regulation data. Via this configuration, it is possible to update penal regulation data records.